Yellow Jacket

No, we aren’t talking about Georgia Tech’s mascot… we are talking about ‘wasps’ which are frequently mistaken with the honey bee, however are far from them. Yellow jackets are not covered in hairs, nor do they transfer pollen as pollinators do. This 12-19mm long bee have strong mandibles for chewing insects and have a proboscis for sucking nectar, fruit and other juices. The carnivore can sting its prey and/or target multiple times, although on the occasional circumstance will get the stinger lodged and then die. Yellow jackets will form paper-like nests in trees, shrubs and other protected places such as man-made structures, soil cavities and mouse burrows. Typically a yellow jacket’s nest will last only one season and will die off by winter; however a mild winter can allow the yellow jackets to grow in size instead of die out. They are very aggressive and will attack anything that threatens its livelihood. Although they are not known to chase their victims very far, often less than 100 ft.